Overnight fire guts downtown buildings in Vinton, Iowa

Vinton's volunteer fire department received help from the fire departments of several surrounding communities.

Posted: Feb. 9, 2018 10:01 AM

VINTON, Iowa (AP) — A fire has gutted four downtown buildings in the small eastern Iowa city of Vinton.

The Des Moines Register reports that the fire started Thursday night in the Michael and Dowd furniture store and spread to Clingman Pharmacy, Fischer Law Firm and the Benton County Title Company. The fire burned through much of the night, with firefighters battling the blaze while temperatures hovered in the teens and heavy snow fell.

No injuries had been reported by Friday morning.

Vinton's volunteer fire department received help from the fire departments of several surrounding communities.

Vinton is a city of about 5,300 located about 100 miles (160.93 kilometers) northeast of Des Moines.